Hey sparrowgrass, just a tip. The original source of this idea suggested it would take 20 to 40 minutes for the top layer of your undisturbed tomatoes to soften. Mine took an hour just due to the large vat of tomatoes i had.

I also wanted to give credit for this idea. I found it in my all time favorite magazine ever, Countryside and Small Stock Journal (small stock as in animal, not Wall Street!). It is a reader written homesteaders magazine, not unlike this forum, lots of ideas from different perspectives.

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Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. Margaret Mead

Beth - your pot is going to be somewhere in the 22-25 US liquid quart range (5.5-6.25 US liquid gallons) - depends on how you measured it (inside or outside dimensions), accuracy (rounding something like 12-7/8 inches to 13 and 10-7/8 inches to 11 inside dimensions will make a 1-quart difference), etc. That's counting the beans a little too close for home cooking!

Now that I understand the method to your madness ... it makes sense to me. I'll have to try your method the next time I have a chance.

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"It ain't what you don't know that gets you in trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so." - Mark Twain

Thanks Michael for the estimate on the gallon size for my large pot, six gallon is good enough for me! And I just re-discovered that I have another Vollrath in the kitchen, a pot that I have long considered a three gallon pot. I appreciate the info on their cooking/heating attributes, I like any info that helps me understand how my equipment works. And I have some new found respect for those two pots! My grandmother taught me to purchase the best quality equipment that I possibly can, and then take care of it. I had those pots so long I forgot they were Vollraths. And they will surely outlast me. And am glad you could find a method to my madness. It will be awhile before I can any tomatoes, my plants are barely flowering.

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Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. Margaret Mead